Is epirubicin effective in first-line chemotherapy of metastatic breast cancer (MBC) after an epirubicin-containing adjuvant treatment? A single centre phase III trial
Open Access
- 18 April 2006
- journal article
- Published by Springer Science and Business Media LLC in British Journal of Cancer
- Vol. 94 (9), 1233-1236
- https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.bjc.6603096
Abstract
The aim of the study was to demonstrate the superiority of docetaxel and epirubicin vs docetaxel alone as first-line therapy in metastatic breast cancer patients pretreated with adjuvant or neoadjuvant epirubicin. We compared single agent docetaxel 100 mg m-2 (D) with the combination of docetaxel 80 mg m-2 and epirubicin 75 mg m-2 (ED). The response rate (72 vs 79%), the progression-free survival (median 9 vs 11 months) and the overall survival (median 18 vs 21 months) were not significantly different between the ED (n=26) and D arms (n=25), respectively. Leucopaenia, nausea and stomatitis were significantly worse with ED. In conclusion, epirubicin should not be administered in combination with taxanes in metastatic breast cancer patients relapsed after an anthracycline-based adjuvant or neoadjuvant therapy.Keywords
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